One Night Changes Everything
by JasonMorganfan87
Summary: Takes place shortly after Marty finds John and Natalie kissing.  After John breaks up with her, Marty ends up at a bar with Todd.  Now one drunken night may change Todd and Marty's lives forever
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: I don't own One Life To Live or any of its characters**

**One Night Changes Everything**

Marty Saybrook was sitting on her couch reading when she heard a knock at the door. She quickly got up and made her way over to answer it. Once she opened the door, she found that it was John. "Hey. Come on in," she said as she stepped aside to let him in.

"Hey. Can we talk?" John asked.

"Sure," Marty said as she closed the door behind John. "What's up?"

"Let's sit down," John said.

"Okay, I'm not liking the sound of this," Marty said. She knew that if he wanted her to sit down, it wasn't good.

"Let's just sit," he said as he tried to lead her to the couch.

Marty gently pushed his arm away. "I think I'd prefer to stand."

"Look, I want you to know that I really care about you."

"You're breaking up with me," Marty realized. She wasn't stupid. Anytime a guy started off by telling you much he cared about you, he was breaking up with you..

"I just don't think that this is going to work," John said.

"Oh, you mean because you can't kiss Natalie while you're with me," Marty said bitterly.

"It's not like that," John said.

"No? You're not leaving me for Natalie?" Marty asked.

John didn't say a word. He just looked down.

"That's what I thought. You're a real bastard, you know that?" Marty asked. She was beyond hurt and beyond angry. How could he do this to her? How could he tell her that Natalie meant nothing to him and then leave her weeks later?

"Don't be like that."

"Don't be like what? What do you want from me, John. What, do you want me to be happy that you're breaking up with me? That even after I found you with Natalie, you didn't have the decency to tall me that you had feelings for her? You want me to be happy that you've strung me along for weeks? Is that what you want John?" Marty asked angrily.

"I never meant to hurt you," John said lamely.

"Get out! Just get out of here and don't come back," Marty ordered. She felt herself losing control and she wasn't about to let John see he like that.

"I'm sorry," John said.

"Just go," she said.

John reluctantly walked out the door, leaving a hurt and angry Marty behind.

Xxxxxxxxxxx

Marty walked through the Palace and over to the bar and addressed the bartender "Vodka and lots of it." She knew it was dangerous for her to be drinking, but she didn't care. All she cared about was getting drunk as she possibly could. "Thank you. Keep them coming," she said when her drink was delivered.

"Bad day?" came a familiar voice.

Marty turned to her right and groaned as she saw Todd sitting next her with his own drink. The last thing she wanted to deal with tonight was Todd Manning. "Out of all the bars in town, I just had to come to the you'd be at."

"You shouldn't be drinking at all," Todd said as took a sip of his scotch. Marty had Lupus, so she wasn't supposed to drink. If he weren't so drunk, he'd probably try to stop her from drinking.

"Oh, don't you lecture me. Not after the day I've had," Marty said before turning to the bartender. "Give me another."

"Make that two," Todd told him before once again addressing Marty. "So let me guess, a certain brooding detective and his red headed girlfriend."

Marty slammed her empty glass down on the bar. "Are you kidding me? Am I really the last one to know? Am I really that pathetic that I couldn't see it?"

"I've known John a lot longer than you have, Marty. I know what he does to women. I recognized it starting with Natalie," Todd said before taking a sip of his newest drink.

"So what's up with you. Why are you getting so hammered?" Marty wondered.

"Tea. We just got into a fight. She says she can't be with me because Dani doesn't want her to," Todd complained.

"That's stupid," Marty said. She never understood how any parent could succumb to their children's demands like that.

"Tell me about. Give me another one," Todd told the bartender.

"Ditto. In fact, you might as well just leave the bottles," Marty said.

"I'm going to need your keys, Ma'am," the bartender said.

"Not a problem," she said before tossing him her keys. She then turned back to Todd. "I take it he already got yours.

"Yup. Like an hour ago," Todd confirmed. "So you finally kicked McBain's ass to the curb."

"I don't want to talk about John. I just want to get stupidly dunk as fast as possible," Marty said.

"Here here."

Xxxxxxxxxxx

Marty woke up the next morning with a splitting headache. She brought her hand to her head and groaned. It seemed that the consequences of getting extremely drunk had started. She slowly opened her eyes and looked around. She surprised to find out that she wasn't in her bedroom at home. She seemed to be in a hotel room. She was even more surprised when she realized she didn't have any clothes on. She hadn't gone home with some guy, had she. The last thing she remembered was tossing back drinks with Todd.

Marty's eyes grew wide. A horrible thought just occurred to her. "Oh God, no." Her fears were confirmed when she looked next to her and saw Todd Manning sleeping. She'd just slept with Todd Manning.


	2. Chapter 2

Marty stared at Todd's sleeping form in shock. It was all so unbelievable. She couldn't believe that she'd been drunk enough to go to bed with Todd Manning. Anyone else, maybe, but not Todd. She didn't think it was even possible to be that drunk. But somehow it had happened. She'd had sex with Todd. That was painfully obvious.

Suddenly, Todd began to stir. He slowly opened his eyes and brought his hand up to his hand. "Oh crap."

"My thoughts exactly," Marty said.

Todd bolted up when he heard her voice. He hadn't expected to hear anyone there with him, let alone Marty. He looked over at her, and his shock continued. She was laying there in bed next to without closes on, just like him. It didn't exactly take a rocket scientist to figure out what happened. "Oh God."

"Took the words right out of my mouth," Marty said.

"Marty, I swear, I didn't mean for this to happen. I'm so sir-"

"Oh, shut up. As much as I would love to blame this entire incident on you, I can't. You didn't take advantage of me. You were drunker than I was," Marty said. The one thing she did remember clearly was that Todd had already been drunk when she got to the bar, and he didn't let up once she got there.

"Do you remember this happening?" Todd wondered. He had absolutely no memory of sleeping with Marty, so he wondered if she did.

"No," Marty replied.

"How could this have happened?" he asked out loud.

"I'm not sure, but something tells me it involved lots and lots of liquor. By the way, I'm never drinking again," Marty vowed. If there was ever a reason to to stay sober for the rest of time, this was it. "Okay, here's what we're going to do. We're going to get dressed and we're going to go our separate ways. We are going to forget this ever happened."

"That sounds like a good plan," Todd agreed.

Xxxxxxxxxxx

About ten minutes later, Marty came out of the bathroom after getting dressed. She found Todd standing in the middle of room, buttoning his shirt. "Alright, so we're agreed. Whatever happened last night never leaves this room. We never mention it again." She still couldn't believe it happened in the first place. Todd Manning was the last person she should've ever gone to bed with.

"Yeah, we're agreed," Todd said. It shouldn't be too hard for him to forget given that he couldn't remember it happening. He was sort of glad for that. If he did remember, he wasn't sure he would be able to just walk away as if it never happened.

"Alright," Marty said before grabbing her coat and purse, and walking out the door.

Xxxxxxxxxxx

A few weeks later, Marty dragged herself from her couch to the front door. She felt absolutely horrible. She must have developed some kind of stomach bug because she'd been feeling sick for for about a week now.

She opened the door and found Nora on the other side. "Hey, Nora. What are you doing here?"

"You forgot?" Nora asked.

"Forgot what?" Marty asked confused. She wasn't sure what it was she was supposed to have forgotten.

"Lunch."

Realization suddenly hit Marty. She'd made plans to have lunch with Nora so they could catch up. "That was today? I'm so sorry. I completely forgot."

"Well, I can see why. You don't look so good. Are you alright?" asked a concerned Nora.

"Yeah, I'm fine. I guess I just caught some kind of virus," Marty replied.

"How long have you had it," she asked.

"On and off for about a week or so," Marty said.

"A week? Marty you see a doctor," Nora said.

"No, I'm fine. It's probably just some kind of stomach virus," Marty said.

"Still, it's better to be safe than sorry," Nora told her.

"It's not a big deal. Besides, I am a doctor. I diagnosed myself," she said.

"Really? Did you take your own blood and give yourself your own exam?" Nora asked.

Marty laughed. "Alright, fine. If it'll make you feel better I'll go see a doctor."

"Good. I'll go with you."

"What you don't trust me to go by myself?" Marty asked jokingly.

"Nope," Nora answered.

Marty sighed before grabbing her coat and purse. "Alright, but I'm telling you, you're wasting your time," she said before walking out the door and following Nora.

Xxxxxxxxxxx

Marty found herself sitting in an exam room waiting for her test results. She'd been there for about an hour. She looked up as her doctor walked into the room. "Is everything alright," she asked him.

"I have your test results," the young doctor said.

"I was right, wasn't I? It's just a stomach bug, isn't it?" Marty asked.

"Actually, no."

Marty started to get alarmed. If it wasn't just a virus, then something more serious might be wrong. "What is it? Is it bad?"

"I guess that depends on your prospective," the doctor said smiling.

"Okay, would you just come out with it already? Tell me what's wrong with me," Marty demanded. She was not in the mood for games. If something was wrong with her, she wanted to know what it was, and she wanted to know now.

"You're pregnant."


	3. Chapter 3

"I'm sorry, I must have heard you wrong. I could've sworn you just said that I was pregnant," Marty said. She couldn't be pregnant. She just couldn't be.

"No, you heard me correctly, Doctor Saybrooke. You are pregnant," the doctor said.

Marty was completely shocked. She never even suspected she might be pregnant. Though, she didn't know why. She was a doctor and all the signs were there. Not to mention the fact that she did have unprotected sex recently. Another thought then occurred to her. It hadn't been long before her night with Todd then she'd been with John. This could be his child too. "How far along?"

"Well, you'd need an ultrasound to know for sure, but I'd say no longer than a month," he said.

Marty closed her eyes sadly. That meant both Todd and John were in the running. Either way she looked at it, she was pregnant by a man she wanted absolutely nothing to do with. Her baby was either Todd's, who was her rapist. If this baby was his, that would tie her to him for life. On the other hand, if the baby were John's, she be tied to that womanizing jerk for the rest of her life. Also something she didn't want. She honestly wasn't sure which scenario was worse.

"Are you alright, Doctor Saybrooke," the doctor asked.

"Yeah, I'm fine. I think I just need some time to let this sink in," Marty said before getting up off the exam table. "I'm going to go home.

"Just make sure you contact a OBGYN soon."

Marty nodded before walking out the door.

Xxxxxxxxxxx

A couple hours later, Marty found herself banging on Todd's door. She felt she needed to at least tell one of the possible father's of her child know that she was pregnant. And since her hatred for John was a bit higher than her hatred for Todd, she figured Todd was the better option. Also, the truth was, the baby was most likely Todd's. It might have only been one time, but it was the only time in the last year she'd been anyone without using protection.

Todd opened the door a few seconds later only to have Marty brush past him into the house. "Oh, yes, Marty, please come in," he said dryly.

"Are you alone?" Marty asked as she led the way into the living room.

"Yeah, who else would be here?" Todd asked as he followed her. "What's going on?"

Marty turned around to face him. "Alright, I'm just going to say it. I'm pregnant."

Todd gaped in shock. That was the last thing he expected to hear. He wasn't sure why, but for some reason the idea of Marty getting pregnant by never crossed his mind. "You're sure?"

"Yeah," Marty said.

"Okay, don't take this the wrong way, but what are the odds that this baby is mine," Todd asked.

"Pretty good. John and I always used protection. I guess it's still possible that the baby could be his, but it's highly unlikely. I'm assuming we didn't use protection," Marty said as she sat down on the couch.

Todd sat down next to her. "Well, I don't remember what happened, but if I'd been thinking clearly enough to put on a condom, it probably wouldn't have happened." He knew he wouldn't have slept with Marty if he hadn't been so drunk. He'd never take advantage of her like that again.

"Yeah, I figured as much. The question is still there though. While it's unlikely that John is the father, it's still possible. No protection is one hundred percent effective," she explained.

"Is there any way we can find out?" Todd asked.

"We could do an amniocentesis at four months, but I don't think I'm willing to do that. There's a bit of a risk to the baby, and that's not a risk I'm willing to take," Marty said.

"No, I agree," Todd said. If this was his baby, he didn't want anything done that could hurt it.

"So I guess we're waiting for nine months," Marty said. She wasn't exactly wild about that fact, but it was better than putting her child at risk. That was not an option.

"Have you told John about this," he asked.

"I can't even be in the same room with John without wanting to deck him, which would not be good for the baby. Especially since this is going to be a high risk pregnancy," Marty said.

"What?" Todd asked alarmed. What Marty said scared him. Why would the baby be at risk.

"I have Lupus, Todd. Every pregnancy for me is going to be risky," Marty explained.

"So what do we do to minimize the risk?"

"The only thing I can do it listen to the doctor, and try to reduce my stress level," Marty replied. "That's why I'm going to wait a little while before talking to John. Because right now, talking to John is not going to reduce my stress level."

"Marty, I want you to know that I'll be here for you. Whatever you need, just ask," Todd said.

Marty burst out laughing.

"I mean it, Marty. I will be here for you," Todd said. He assumed she was laughing because she didn't believe him, and he didn't really blame her.

"No, I wasn't laughing because I didn't believe you. I do," Marty said. No matter what else, she knew that Todd would be there for her and the baby. "I was laughing because of the irony of all this. The fact is, your support is probably more than I'll ever get from John. If that's not irony, I don't know what is," Marty said.

Todd couldn't argue with that. John would never be there for Marty and her baby. John was no father. He wasn't capable of that.

"Look, I need to be honest. I don't want to be carrying you child. I don't want to be tied to you for life. But I won't cut you out either. If this is your child, I won't exclude you," Marty promised. She hated the idea of having Todd apart of her everyday life, but her baby deserved it's father. She wouldn't take that away from her baby.

"Thanks," he said.

Marty nodded and then stood up. "Alright, I better go. I'll call you," she said before walking away.


	4. Chapter 4

A few days later, Marty was in an exam room at the hospital getting ready for her first ultrasound. Todd was with her. She felt she owed it to him to allow him to come. She had promised that he could be involved after all. Realistically, she knew she should extend the same courtesy to John, as there was a possibility that he was the father, but for one, she was pretty sure Todd was the father, and for another, she couldn't stand the sight of John right now. It was pretty sad really. She preferred to be in the presence of her rapist than her ex.

"Thanks for letting me be here, Marty. I really appreciate it. I didn't really get this with my other kids," Todd said.

Marty nodded. "Well, this baby is more than likely yours, so I figured you deserved to be here."

"I still have a hard time believing this is actually happening," Todd said. If anyone had told him a few months ago that Marty would possibly be pregnant with his child, he would've said they were crazy.

"Yeah, so do I. I thought this part of my life was over," Marty said. She didn't necessarily think it was a bad surprise though. She loved being a mother. She was ready and willing to do it again. The circumstances were less than ideal though. She never thought she'd be one of those women that didn't know who the father of her baby was, and she certainly wasn't wild about the choices in the father. But the situation was what it was. She just had to deal with it.

Just then, the doctor came in. It was a dark haired woman who looked to be in her late thirties to early forties. "Hello, Marty. How are you today?"

"Hey, Lauren. Uh, Todd, this is Doctor Lauren Russell. Lauren, this is Todd Manning," Marty introduced.

"Nice to meet you, Mr. Manning. You must be the father. Well, are you guys ready to get started?"

Marty and Todd both nodded. Todd sat in a chair by Marty's side and watched as Doctor Russell set up the monitor and started the ultrasound. Soon an image came onto the screen.

Doctor Russell pointed to the screen. "Well, there it is, guys. There's your baby."

Todd looked at the screen mesmerized. It wasn't until that moment that it really hit him. This was actually happening. Marty was having his child. Well, okay, the baby might not be his, but in all likelihood it was.

This was going to change things. Of course, Todd knew that before, but it was only really sinking in now. He and Marty were never going to have the relationship they had before if this kid ended up being his. Before, Marty barely tolerated his presence, and even that was only for Starr, Cole, and Hope. They'd had very minimal contact since after he'd kept her in his house and she'd learned who he really was. That was going to have to change now. They were parents to the same child. They were going to have to work together to make sure their child grew up safe and happy. They would now always be in each other's lives. Again, that was assuming the child was his, which he believed it was.

Marty smiled at the image of her baby for a few minutes before looking over at the doctor. "The baby's okay, right?"

"Yes. He or she has a very strong heartbeat and is developmentally on schedule. Of course, this is still a high risk pregnancy, Marty. I trust you know that?" Doctor Russell asked.

Marty nodded. "Yeah, we know."

"Your age alone makes it kind of risky, but your Lupus also makes it dangerous. You're going to have to be extremely careful. I want you to keep all stress to a minimum," Doctor Russell said.

Marty nodded. "I will do whatever it takes."

"Okay, well, I'm sure you guys both want a photo of the ultrasound, so I'm going to print those up and we'll schedule a follow-up appointment for a couple of months from now," the doctor said.

Todd and Marty both nodded.

Xxxxxxxxxxx

Todd and Marty walked out of the exam room fifteen minutes later. "Thanks again for letting me come, Marty."

"You don't have to keep thanking me, Todd. You had a right to be here. Besides, it was partly selfish. No woman wants to be alone for an ultrasound when she's pregnant. She wants to be able to share it with the father. That's what I wanted too, even if the father is you," Marty said.

"So, um, I guess we've gotta figure some stuff out," Todd said. They were going to have to come up with some kind of arrangement if he was the father of this baby. They had to figure out how they were going to deal with this whole situation.

Marty nodded. "Yeah, we do. We have a little time though. Nothing has to be sorted out today. Still, I guess we shouldn't put it off too long. Have you told Tea?"

"No. I wasn't sure you'd want me to. Besides, we're not together. She decided that because she didn't want to upset Dani," Todd said. That still irritated him. The idea of Tea letting their daughter dictate their lives really got on his nerves. It was a really stupid thing to do. Dani was their child. She was supposed to do what they said, not the other way around.

"Well, it's true that I didn't want anyone else to know until I told John, and I didn't want to tell John for a while. But that's an unrealistic hope. We can't keep this a secret for long. It's going to become increasingly obvious over the months. Besides, our families deserve to know the truth. Our kids deserve to know the truth," Marty said. She wasn't really looking forward to telling Cole. He was not going to take the news well. The news that he was going to have a little brother or sister would probably be received alright, but hearing who the father probably was would likely make him angry.

"Maybe you should let me talk to John. You don't need the stress," Todd said. He'd heard what that doctor said. Marty's pregnancy was high risk and the health of her and the baby depending on reducing her stress level.

"I appreciate the offer, Todd, but I need to be the one to tell John. It's my responsibility. Besides, it's not like I wouldn't have to talk to him afterwards," Marty said. Even if she let Todd tell John, John would just come to her immediately afterwards. She wouldn't be avoiding any stress.

"Well, at least let me come with you. If things get out of hand, I can handle John," Todd said.

"I'm not sure that's a good idea either. You and John have a hostile relationship at best," Marty said.

"I won't lose it," Todd said. And he wouldn't, not with Marty there to get upset by it. He just wanted to be there so that he could put a stop to it if John upset Marty.

Marty sighed. "Alright. I'll let you know when I decide to tell John. It won't be today. I still need some time, maybe a few weeks, before I tell him."

"Okay, just let me know. Let me know if you need anything. I'm here for you. I'm here for both of you," Todd said.

"I appreciate that. I'll be in touch," Marty said before walking away


	5. Chapter 5

Todd was in his office a few weeks later going through the possible headlines for the latest edition, all of which he hated, when he heard a commotion going on outside his office. He looked up just in time to see Tea barrel her way through, followed by his assistant.

"So you and Blair are at it again, huh? What, was the cabana not enough for you?" Tea asked angrily.

"Mr. Manning, do you want me to call security?" Todd's secretary asked.

"No. Just go back to work," Todd told her. He waited for her to leave before turning to Tea. "What the hell are you going on about?"

Tea angily went through her purse, pulled out a photo and held it out for Todd. "You wanna explain this?"

Todd immediately recognized the picture as his copy of Marty's sonogram photo. He angrily snatched it from her hand. "The only way you could've gotten your hands on this is if you broke into my house and started rummaging through my desk drawers!"

"Who cares how I got it? That picture is dated less than a month ago! You're screwing around with Blair again. You got her pregnant!" Tea practically screeched.

"Even if that were true, it's none of your business. You left me! I can sleep with Blair or anyone else I want," Todd said. He wasn't going to sit there and be made the villain. Tea left him to placate their teenage daughter. He didn't owe her an explanation and he certainly didn't have anything to apologize for.

"I left to help our daughter!" Tea yelled.

"You left to help yourself! You succumbed to the whims of a fifteen-year-old girl. It's no wonder Dani thinks she can do whatever the hell she wants and get away with it. You taught her that she could! But the point is you left! You don't get to jump in my face about affairs I may or may not have had," Todd said. Okay, so he did have it, but that was beside the point. Once Tea ended it with him, she lost any right to decide how he moved on and with whom.

"How long did it take you, huh? Did it even take you an hour before you jumped back into Blair's bed?" Tea asked angrily.

Todd held the sonogram picture close to his face and pretended to inspect it. "Huh. That's strange. I don't see Blair in this photo."

"Oh, don't give me that! We both know it was Blair. It's always her. You'll always go back to her, won't you?" Tea asked.

"Get out of my office before I have security remove you after all," Todd said. He'd had more than enough of this crap. He wasn't listening to anymore.

A malicious grin came over Tea's face. "I wonder how Danella will react when I tell her about this."

Todd gasped in mock horror. "You're gonna make her hate me. Oh, wait, she already does! Get out."

Tea glared at him for a minute and then left.

Xxxxxxxxxxx

Marty was in her office doing paperwork when she heard a knock on her door. "Come in." She looked up a second later to see Todd coming her way. Normally this would be where she told him to get the hell out, but she couldn't really do that anymore, not with him being the father of her child. Besides, better him than John. "Hey. What are you doing here?"

"I need to talk to you for a few minutes. Are you busy?" Todd asked.

"No. My last patient cancelled, so I'm free the rest of the day. Is something wrong?" Marty asked.

"No, not really, but there's something you should know about," Todd said before sitting down in the chair in front of Marty's desk. "Tea broke into my place last night. She found my copy of the sonogram picture in my desk."

"She broke into your house? Why?" Marty asked.

Todd shook his head. "Who knows why she does half the things she does. Anyway, she came into my office screaming like a madwoman and basically shoved the picture in my face."

"So she knows then," Marty summed. That meant she was going to have to tell John soon. She wasn't so vindictive that she would let him find out from someone else.

"No, she doesn't. She came to the conclusion that it had to be Blair that I slept with. I let her believe it after questioning her logic just slightly. I know you don't want anyone else to know until you tell John, and honestly, I didn't really feel like I owed her an explanation," Todd said.

"But Tea will probably confront Blair."

"And Blair will confront me and I'll have two crazy women in my face. But I'll live with it. It's not like I don't have them in my face regularly anyway. I just thought you should know," Todd said.

Just then, the door burst open and John walked in. He looked at Todd and glared. "What are you doing here, Manning?"

"Better question. What are you doing, John? I don't recall inviting you in or you even knocking. I could've been with a patient," Marty said.

"Your assistant said you weren't," John said.

"So you decided just to walk into my office?" Marty asked coldly.

"I've been trying to call you," John said.

"And I haven't been answering. That should've told you something," Marty replied. She'd gotten every one of John's calls and it made her blood boil every time. Given that she was trying to avoid stress, she figured it wasn't a good idea to talk to him.

John looked at Todd. "Get out of here, Manning?"

Todd was about to speak, but Marty beat him to it. "You don't throw anyone out of this office, John. Todd actually knocked on the door and I said he could come in. I never thought I'd say this, but perhaps you should take notes."

Todd couldn't keep the smirk from reaching his face. He couldn't help. It was very rare that John got dressed down like this, and even more rare when it was in defense of him.

"Now, we were in the middle of a private conversation. What do you want?" Marty asked irritably.

"I'm worried about you. Natalie mentioned seeing you come out of a hospital room a few weeks ago," John said.

"Yeah, well, your girlfriend needs to mind her own damn business!" Marty said angrily. She was beyond pissed right now, so pissed in fact that she was starting to shake with anger. Natalie had no right talking to John about anything she might have seen her do and John had no right pretending to care about it.

Todd could see how upset Marty was getting and he started to fear for her and the baby. This was what the doctor had warned them to avoid. "Get out of here, McBain."

"Stay out of this, Manning," John said angrily.

Todd stood up and glared at John. He was trying very hard to remain calm. Getting in a pissing contest with John wasn't going to help Marty's stress level. "I said, get out, or I will get security and tell them you're harassing a doctor in this hospital."

John looked at Marty and waited for her to say something. When she didn't, it left him wondering what was going on. Why was Marty taking Manning's side over his? Why wasn't she demanding that he be the one to leave? "Marty."

"Leave," Marty said as attempted to calm down. She had to think about her baby. She couldn't let John get he worked up like this.

John looked between the two of them. "I don't know what the hell's going on here, but I'm going to find out," he said before walking away.

"You okay?" Todd asked.

"Yeah," Marty sad before grabbing a water bottle that was on her desk and taking a sip of it.

"You sure? Maybe you should let me take you home," Todd said.

Marty was about to refuse, but thought better of it. It probably wasn't a good idea to stay and work after that. She needed to get her stress level under control, and for that, she needed to relax. "Alright, maybe that's a good idea."

Todd smiled slightly. He wasn't expected to win that one. "Great. I'll have someone bring your car to you later."

"Thanks," Marty said before standing up and grabbing her things. She then led the way out of her office.


	6. Chapter 6

Marty walked into her house with Todd trailing behind. "Thanks for driving me home."

"Yeah, no problem," Todd said as he closed the door behind him. "Is there anything else I can do for you?"

"I don't know. Can you make John disappear?" Marty asked sarcastically.

"Well, if you really want me to…"

"It was a joke, Todd," Marty said as she gave him a look.

Todd chuckled. "I know. You know, it's hard to believe that it's McBain you want to disappear and not me."

"Don't get excited. I don't really want you around either. But I can tolerate you more than John nowadays, and you're right, that is very sad," Marty said before taking a seat on the couch. It was weird that she preferred Todd to John. She never thought that day would happen, but then again, she never thought John would hurt her the way he did.

Todd sat down in an armchair next to the couch. "So you want me to be the father."

"Given the other option, yes, and that's not something I ever thought I'd say. Not only can I not stand the sight of John right now, I'm not sure he'd make a good father," Marty said. John couldn't even commit to a woman for more than a few months. That was something she'd come to realize after their break up. So if he couldn't commit to a woman, how well would he do with a baby. Todd, on the other hand, was a good father. No matter how horrible he might be to everyone else around him, he was great with his kids. She could count on him.

"You're right. John's never struck me as the type that could commit to anyone for longer than a few months. How in the hell would he commit to a baby?" Todd asked.

"Which is why, despite the fact that it's you, I think you'll be the better option for this baby. He or she deserves a consistent father. That's not likely to happen with John," Marty said. If John was the dad, she'd deal with it. She wouldn't push him out because she was pissed at him, but she also wouldn't let him jerk her child along like he did with her. He was going to be a consistent father or he wouldn't be one at all.

"You have to decide how you wanna handle John now. He's not gonna go away and his presence is causing issues. What happened today can't happen again. It puts the baby in danger," Todd said. He wasn't trying to lecture her or anything. He was just trying to look out for her and the baby.

"I know. I can't let him and Natalie get to me. I have to think about the baby," Marty said mostly to herself.

"I think maybe we should just get telling him over with. I think that's just adding onto the stress. We just tell him and ask him to back off. If he has any decency, he'll listen for the sake of the baby," Todd said.

"And if he doesn't? If he decides to start following me around until the baby's born?" Marty asked. That was hardly going to make the situation less stressful. She couldn't stand the sight of John right now. She certainly didn't want him around twenty-four hours a day.

"Then you get an order of protection," Todd said bluntly. It was a drastic move, but if it would protect Marty and the baby, so be it.

Marty raised an eyebrow in surprise. She almost couldn't believe he'd said that. "Are you kidding? What reason would I give. It's not like he'll be threatening me or anything."

"No, but if he goes following you around like a stalker, he'll be putting you and the baby at risk, so the end is the same," Todd said.

"I don't wanna go that far," Marty said. She might be really pissed at John right now, but she wasn't so bitter that she wanted to hit him with a restraining order, especially since he might be the father.

"Well, hopefully he won't make you, but if he does, what's best for the baby has to come first, right?" Todd asked.

"Yeah," Marty said. What was best for the baby was the most important thing. He or she had to come before everything else. So if John forced her to, she would have to do it Todd's way. She didn't want to, but Todd was right. It wouldn't be good for her or the baby for John to be all over her.

"Look, let's take it one thing at a time. We have to tell him," Todd said.

"Okay, you're right. I'll call John and ask him to come over at around one tomorrow. Is that good for you?" Marty asked.

"Yeah, it's fine," Todd said before standing up. "I'll see you tomorrow."

"Thanks again for your help today," Marty said.

Todd nodded and headed for the door.

Xxxxxxxxx

When Todd pulled into his driveway, he found Blair by the front door glaring towards him. "Oh, crap. Just what I need. Wasn't one crazy ex-wife enough?"

Todd parked the car and got out. He immediately started towards the house and Blair.

"Well, it's about time. I've been waiting here for nearly a half hour," Blair complained.

"Well, maybe you should've called first," Todd said. Not that he would've answered. Listening to Blair yell about Tea's hissy fit was not something he would go out of his way to do.

"Guess who I just had a run in with. Your crazy ex-wife. Wanna guess what she wanted to talk about, or should I say scream about?" Blair asked.

"Something that's neither hers nor your business," Todd said as he began unlocking the door.

"I think it is my business when your ex accuses me of being pregnant with your kid!" Blair yelled.

Todd turned back around. "Yeah, well, we both know you're not, so what does it matter?"

"Tea says she found a sonogram. You get someone pregnant?" Blair asked

"Once again we're back to none of your business," Todd retorted.

"The hell it's not! We have children together! I have the right to know it if they are going to have a brother or sister and who it's mother is!" Blair argued.

Todd glared at his ex-wife. "You know, I am so sick of you using my children to try to get information about my life that you have no right to! Stay out of it!" he yelled before opening his door and walking inside.

"Just tell me. Are you having another kid or not?" Blair asked.

"Goodbye, Blair," Todd said before slamming the door in her face.


End file.
